Art and Music on the Hill

Lainey S. Cronk

PUC’S RIGHT BRAIN
Art and Music on the Hill
By Lainey S. Cronk

Through the double wooden doors of the Paulin Hall choir room seep rich waves of harmony, in patchwork pieces—three measures of tenor and bass, a phrase repeated four times by sopranos, and a page of weaving notes.

Above the gray carpet stretching past the practice rooms, layers of music fade into each other. A piano jazzes up “Amazing Grace.” A flute flies over scales. A voice and a guitar mingle like rain in a river.

There’s plenty of formal music around campus—concerts, recitals, choirs …but at the heart, many of us just love music, and that love shows up in all kinds of ways, including less formal means of expression.

The Stage is Open
For those with strong voices and stout hearts, there are plenty of places for up-front student involvement and leadership in music. Every Sabbath, PUC church’s worship pastor coordinates a group of vocalists and musicians to lead out in the worship portion of the church service. Each week, the group consists almost entirely of PUC students. Students also organize and lead out in the music for every vespers and collegiate Sabbath school, in addition to providing music on other assorted occasions.

And So Is The Nursing Home
For students who are wary of the stage but who like to sing and want to encourage others, Lighthouse Ministries offers another option. Every Sabbath afternoon, Lighthouse sets out to minister to the community, often by toting a stack of hymnals to a nearby rehabilitation center or retirement home and engaging the inhabitants in a session of singing.

The images…
Late afternoon sun lies in streaks across the floor, drawing purple shadows from the legs of the easels scattered through the room. Leftover charcoal sketches taped to drawing boards lean against the easels and slope toward the light.

The lights gleam green on the panels behind the ferns. Overhead a pale moon throws additional soft light over the scene and the rows of heads waiting for the actors to come onstage. An art student watches anxiously as the stagehands roll in the elegant tree she created for the production.

Art students and other students with artistic propensities have a variety of places—in addition to the traditional classes—where they can share or cultivate their work.

Designing for Work
Student graphic designers find that they are needed on the PUC campus in such places as the P.R. office and the Campus Chronicle. And it’s students who design and produce the annual Funnybook, yearbook, and the art and literary magazine.

Fame and Fortune
PUC’s art and literary magazine, Quicksilver, gives student artists of all styles and levels the chance to be published. Another main channel for artistic expression on campus is the student art and writing contest, which culminates in the yearly Student Art Show in the Rasmussen Art Gallery and the distribution of awards.

In the corners and spaces of PUC, one finds art and music springing up, the freedom for students to express themselves and to praise the One who delights to watch our talents grow strong, like “a tree planted by the water” (Jeremiah 17:8).

Note: This is an archived article and does not necessarily represent current issues at Pacific Union College.